title: Does Social Support Buffer the Effect of Financial Strain on the Trajectory of Smoking in Older Japanese? A 19-Year Longitudinal Study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Although there is extensive research on the stress-buffering effects of social support on health, there is little understanding of this effect on health behaviors such as smoking, particularly during old age. This study aimed to estimate the effect of financial strain and the stress-buffering effect of social support, on the trajectory of smoking over an extended period of time among older Japanese.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data came from a national sample of more than 4,800 adults, aged 60 and older in Japan, with up to 7 repeated observations between 1987 and 2006 (16,669 observations). Hierarchical linear modeling was used to analyze the intrapersonal and interpersonal differences in smoking.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Higher financial strain at baseline was associated with greater amount of smoking, and a slower rate of decline, after adjusting for sociodemographic attributes. Greater instrumental support partially offset the deleterious effect of financial strain on the rate of decline in smoking.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings add a dynamic dimension to understanding the relationship among financial strain, social support, and smoking in old age. This knowledge is significant when designing health policies and interventions regarding health behaviors in late life.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Management and Policy, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor. Research Team for Social Participation and Community Health, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, Tokyo, Japan. murayama@tmig.or.jp.
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Murayama
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Management and Policy, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor.
authors.forename: Joan M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Bennett
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy, Management and Behavior, School of Public Health, State University of New York at Albany, Rensselaer.
authors.forename: Benjamin A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Shaw
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Management and Policy, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor.
authors.forename: Jersey
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor.
authors.forename: Neal
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Krause
authors.affiliation: Research Team for Social Participation and Community Health, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Erika
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kobayashi
authors.affiliation: Research Team for Social Participation and Community Health, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Taro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fukaya
authors.affiliation: Research Team for Social Participation and Community Health, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Shoji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shinkai
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D012944:Social Support; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*
keywords: Financial strain; Hierarchical linear modeling; Japan; Social support; Stress-buffering effect; Trajectory of smoking.